Many consumers today have taken advantage of the advances made to printers and systems for producing photographs. Indeed, the ability of a user to simply send a digital copy of an image to a printer and obtain photographic quality prints has provided the typical consumer with ready access to hardcopies of their photographs and more control over how their photographs look as a finished product.
The quality of a printed photograph depends on a number of factors, including the print medium used to print the photograph. Print media that provide a high-quality printed photograph are usually more costly. For example, micro-porous coated inkjet photo paper can be used to produce hardcopy photographs. However, a higher quality photograph is achieved if a silver halide-based medium is used. The silver halide-based medium is generally more expensive.
Achieving a high image clarity, or distinctness of image (DOI), is more difficult with micro-porous photo paper. Because of tiny imperfections on the surface of the micro-porous photo paper, light reflecting off of the photo paper can result in the image being more fuzzy or blurry than would otherwise occur, for example, if silver halide paper were used.
Throughout the drawings, identical reference numbers designate similar, but not necessarily identical, elements.